Bosnia and Herzegovina
BIH |Continent = Europe |Nickname(s) = Zmajevi (Dragons) Zlatni Ljiljani (Golden Lilies) |Founded = 1992 |Confederation = UEFA |Ground = Asim Ferhatovic, Sarajevo (Cap. 35,500) |Head Coach = Branislav Mikulic |Captain = Emir Spahic |Most Caps = Emir Spahic (71) |Top Scorer = Edin Dzeko (64) |League System = Adriatic League System |Top League = Adriatic Superleague |Current Champion = Dinamo Zagreb |FIFA Ranking = 6 (December 2014) |Highest FIFA Ranking = 4 (March 2014) |Lowest FIFA Ranking = 173 (September 1996) }} Bosnia and Herzegovina is a country in southeastern Europe. It has a population of about 4,600,000. The capital and largest city is Sarajevo. It borders Croatia to the north, west, and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast. Bosnia and Herzegovina was part of the former country of Yugoslavia until it gained its independence in 1992. National Football Team Overview The Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team (Bosnian: Nogometna/Fudbalska reprezentacija Bosne i Hercegovine; in Cyrillic: Ногометна/Фудбалска репрезентација Босне и Херцеговине) is the national football team of Bosnia and Herzegovina, governed by the Football Association of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Prior to that, Bosnian-Herzegovinian players played for the Yugoslavia national football team. The independent Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team has never qualified for a major tournament since its debut attempt for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, but has come close on more than one occasion. Most notably the national team played against Portugal in UEFA play-offs for a place in 2010 FIFA World Cup. Bosnia and Herzegovina plays most of their home matches at Bilino Polje Stadium in the city of Zenica. In a period stretching from April 1996 to September 2006, Bosnia were undefeated at home in Zenica. During 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, Bosnia and Herzegovina national team played all their First Round home matches at this stadium, losing only once, to current European and soon to be World Champion; Spain. The larger Asim Ferhatović Hase Stadium in the city of Sarajevo, is the secondary home stadium of the national side. Bosnia and Herzegovina's first ever FIFA international victory came against FIFA World Cup 1994 runners-up Italy on 6 November 1996. The national teams highest FIFA World Ranking was 25th in August 2007. Competitions Bosnia and Herzegovina have never qualified for an international competition, having only played the World Cup Qualifiers and the UEFA Euro Qualifiers. They went almost all the way in 2009, when they reached the Playoff Stage in the World Cup Qualifiers, but fell short to Portugal, losing 2-0 on aggregate. Kits For the 2014 Season, the contract with Kappa expired and a battle for sponsorship was held. After two weeks of meetings and biddings, German multinational sports brand Puma, adjudicated the team's clothing for 3 years. The shirts will be presented in the World Cup preparation match against Paraguay. The shirts have a more modern look, with the three national colours overlapping at certain times. The Golden colour takes more importance, and the "Fleur-de-Lis" logo returns. Seasons 2010 The 2010 Bosnia and Herzegovina season, started with friendlies and the frist three games of the UEFA Euro Qualifiers. 2011 The 2011 Bosnia and Herzegovina season, featured the remaining games from the UEFA Euro Qualifiers and 2 friendlies. The Bosnian team, arrived second in their group, so they qualified for the playoffs, in which they pitted against Germany, eventually losing 5-3 in aggregate. 2012 In the 2012 Bosnia and Herzegovina season, Branislav Mikulic will return for his second year, and try to qualify for the World Cup, beggining second semester this year, and ending in 2013. 2013 After a slow start, the Bosnians sped up, and beat the world's best team, Spain at their home, which elevated their gameplay enough to land them in the Brazil 2014 World Cup for the first time in their brief history. 2014 The Bosnians played in their first international competition, the 2014 World Cup, in which they won their group, and advanced to the Second Round of the tournament. There, they fell short, on penalties, against Portugal. In the second part of the year, they started up the UEFA Euro Qualifiers where they won their first 3 matches. 2015 In the 2015 season, the Bosnians will look to qualify for the first time to the UEFA European Football Championship, and started off well, with 9 out of 9 points. Records Team Records First International (non-FIFA) Iran 1 - 3 BiH June, 6, 1993. Tehran, Iran. First FIFA International Albania 2-0 BiH November, 30, 1995. Tirana, Albania. Biggest Win BiH 7-0 Estonia September, 10, 2008. Zenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina Biggest Defeat Argentina 5-0 BiH May, 14, 1998. La Plata, Argentina Highest Scoring Game Albania 4-5 BiH October 8th, 2010, Tirana, Albania Most Wins in a Row 7 (June 12th, 2013 to November 20th, 2014) Most Games Unbeaten 12 (June 12th, 2013 to June 29th, 2014) Individual Records Most Goals in a Match Edin Dzeko - 4 (5-2 vs. Benin, August 10th, 2011) Youngest Player Sanjin Prcic (17 years, 263 days, vs. Benin, August 10th, 2011) Oldest Player Emir Spahic (34 years, 177 days, vs. Ghana, February 11th, 2015) Fastest Goal Ermin Zec (17 seconds, vs. Romania, June 3rd, 2011) Youngest Scorer Miralem Pjanic (20 years, 131 days, vs. Qatar, August 11th, 2010) Oldest Scorer Vedad Ibisevic (30 years, 70 days, vs. Romania October 15th, 2014)